August 24 Torshavn Denmark

 I ended the last entry with the weather turning sour. It did indeed get bad and Husavik was waved off for the second time on this trip, and replaced with Akureyri for the second time on this trip.

This visit to Akureyri was not as pleasant as our first, as it was 40 degrees with a 20-knot wind and intermittent rain. A good day to stay aboard.

We were docked in just about the same place as before. Notice white caps on the very protected waters of the fjord.

Our next port of call, Eskifjordur on the east side of Iceland was similarly canceled and we headed directly for the Faroe Islands. So for us effectively two days at sea. 

Torshavn is our next port of call.

Torshavn is known for its houses in old town, Tinganes, with the grass roofs.

Lighthouse atop Fort Skansin

A 45 degree day with intermittent light rain, although just a breeze rather than a gale.  Boat racing is popular here, so it's a good day to get in some practice.

Torshavn Cathedral

Buildings along the Torshavn Yacht Harbor

We were just a week too late to see Joe and the boys.

Street art

Late in the afternoon there were some openings in the clouds and we got a rainbow. 

August 21 Isafjordur Iceland

 The previous day was spent in Reykjavik, where we did no sightseeing. I visited a dentist (and got a root canal to fix a painful front tooth). A nearby mall had a cell phone store so we purchased a cheap phone to fill in for the phone that was killed at Nordkapp until we can get back to the US. No pictures from the dentist, and the mall was just a mall, but with Icelandic signs.

With a new bunch of cruise passengers we went back around the western side of Iceland to stop at Isafjordur. This was another tender port -- Viking was able to secure the only dock while we bounced along to the town.

You can see why these places have ...fjordur in their name.

The 2800 people in town have all the modern conveniences.

I should have paid more attention to the prevalence of electric vehicles in Iceland. Electricity is cheap (geothermal) and it's a perfect match for a Tesla. A decade ago, before EVs became reasonable, Iceland was developing a hydrogen fuel infrastructure using their cheap electricity to make hydrogen.

Apartments facing the inner harbor.

Obligatory bicycle picture, also electric.

Isafjordur is known for its varieties of architecture.

The town's main square

We didn't try them, but were tempted. I was turned off by the no sugar, no palm oil. Made it sound almost healthy.

A modern church

The town exists because of salt fish fishermen.

Gate to the cemetery adjoining the church

Children's playground with a rainbow theme

The tender trip back to the ship has no pictures because they would all be blurry. It was bumpy, particularly when tying up to the ship. Disembarking the tender took a long time with lots of motion and no horizon to look at. I didn't eat much for lunch.

And this was a harbinger of things to come. Our next port, Husavik, has once again to much wind and waves to tender successfully so we've pulled into Akureyri (see August 11). But it's COLD, WINDY and RAINING so no attempt at walking around. The great weather that Captain Leo has brought all along for us sees to be failing. It could be messy for the next several days.

August 19 Grundarfjordur Iceland

 After two days at sea crossing from Prince Christian Sound we come to the western edge of Iceland. Grundarfjordur is a sprawling metropolis, population 872. It didn't take long to walk through most of the town.

That's the whole town, excepting the farms.

This was a tender port. In the center of the picture is a helicopter ambulance running the engines at power while a ground ambulance pulled up. I would guess that emergency cases travel to Reykjavik, about 100 air miles away.

This boat was completely boxed into the garage bay. Maybe someone lives onboard and they're keeping it warm(er) by enclosing it. Or they're working on it. Or, maybe, the boat came flying through from the far side and came to rest here -- but there was no hole on the other side of the building.

Other mariners

Iceland, and all of the people, have been very friendly.

Iceland towns all seem to have a rainbow display somewhere that proclaims acceptance of all. This one repurposes a washing machine to make a point.

The town church, replastering the steeple tower.

From the town information: Next to the church, you find an impressive sculpture created by the famous Icelandic artist Steinunn Þórarinsdóttir. The sculpture shows an Icelandic fisherwoman and is a tribute to the life and work of fishermen. 

Notice the rainbow themed elevated path running to the statue. Each board had a different name on it.

Residential section near the church. There was a nice supermarket and pharmacy within 100 meters. The market had all the essentials - Pringles and Oreos (and real food too).

Why are trampolines so prevalent in Greenland/Iceland? I don't think the Vikings had trampolines.

Visible from our anchorage about a mile out of town.